ALBANY -- Governor David Paterson is talking tough as he tries to get state legislators to enact a state budget.
With the budget nearly a month late and the state facing a $9.2 billion deficit, Paterson is calling upon lawmakers to give him the go-ahead to enforce a one day a week furlough on 100,000 state workers.
State CSEA President Danny Donahue responded via Twitter to the idea with one word: "Nuts." Regional CSEA Spokesman Mark Kotzin explains, "To think that the Governor's plan... wouldn't seriously disrupt the business of the state, that's nuts."
Paterson also wants to force state lawmakers to stay in Albany five days a week to work on the budget.
More on this story from the Associated Press:
New York Gov. David Paterson says he may force the Legislature to choose between one-day-a-week furloughs for state workers or a shutdown of state government as tensions rise over a late budget.
The Democratic governor is proposing the unpaid furloughs for about 100,000 state workers in a bill this week.
But he says Wednesday that if the Legislature rejects that - as is expected - he may include furloughs in the emergency spending bill that keeps the state operating when the budget is late.
If furloughs are in the next emergency bill coming up in two weeks, lawmakers will either have to accept them or reject the entire measure, shutting down state government.
Paterson says furloughs would save the state $30 million a week as it faces a fiscal crisis.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
